Checking In With Chelsea

DIY ideas, crafts, and tips for your home

subscribe and never miss a thing!

Receive Free Email Updates

  • About
  • Videos
  • Projects
    • Indoor Projects
    • Outdoor Projects
    • Craft Projects
  • House Tour

The Armchair Reimagined

November 29, 2015 By Chelsea Lipford Wolf 2 Comments

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break with family and friends! My husband and I survived our first road trip with baby Mary Helen up to Indiana and back to visit his side of the family.

Speaking of the baby, my latest project is all about rehabbing a piece of furniture that came out of her room at the beginning of its transformation. Exhibit A:

Armchair in Corner of Guest Room

This lovely, over 20-year-old wingback armchair was inherited from my parents after they remodeled and refurnished their living room. I bought a slipcover for it at one point, but it didn’t fit very well and was returned.

When we moved everything out of the guest room to make way for baby, my sister Emily then inherited the chair. But before it was relocated to my parents’ house for her room, we decided to do something crazy…paint it! And I’m not talking about painting the wood legs. We went all out and painted the upholstery fabric!

wingback armchair painted white in corner of bedroom

I experimented with painting fabric a few months ago when I painted an outdoor rug. And it’s still holding up well, so why not try it out on a chair?!

We figured that since reupholstering the chair was out of the question (and budget) for now, we didn’t have anything to lose. It can still be reupholstered down the road if it didn’t turn out well.

Of course before the paint comes the prep! A previous kitty cat pet used this chair and its matching partner as scratch poles. So there was some “fringe” on the back that needed to be trimmed.

loose threads on back of maroon upholstered armchair

Nothing some decent scissors couldn’t take care of. Then we broke out the upholstery brush attachment on the vacuum to clean the fabric the best we could. It was dusty in the crevices from being out in the shop for a few weeks before we got started.

upholstery brush attachment for vacuum

Now comes the fun, “magic” part. The trick to painting a chair, or any fabric, is using an additive in your latex paint. In particular, we used what’s called “fabric medium”. There are a few brands out there you can pick up from a craft store or online. It helps the paint soak down into the fabric instead of sitting on top and becoming crusty.

fabric medium bottle latex paint mixing pail

We also added some water to the mix to dilute the paint down even more. Mix 2 parts paint with 1 part water and 1 part fabric medium. The fabric medium we used came in 8 ounce bottles. So we mixed that with a cup of water and 2 cups of paint. We weren’t sure how far the paint would go, so we only made a little at a time.

Mixing Water Paint and Fabric Medium

If your paint doesn’t have primer in it, you can follow these same steps with a stain-blocking latex primer in the place of paint for your first coat or two. Then follow it up with a mix of your paint with more fabric medium and water.

Before applying your paint (or primer) mixture with a regular paint brush, lightly mist the fabric with water. Again, this will help the paint soak down into the fibers of the fabric.

spray bottle misting fabric on armchair before painting

Emily and I got the cheapest paint available which did not have primer in it. And it didn’t even dawn on me that we were painting white over a dark maroon without priming.

So about 3 coats in, we still didn’t have much coverage. It was more of a haze.

maroon armchair with 3 coats of white paint

Nothing like adding work to a project to teach you a lesson on primer! One I probably already learned before, albeit not very well. 🙂

I added some primer to our already-made-up paint mixture for the 4th coat. It “stuck” much better!

coat of primer on chair against chair with no primer

Once we were back on track, we painted another 3 coats (sanding between coats) to get nice, even coverage on all of the fabric surfaces.

Between each and every coat, we sanded the entire chair with 220-grit sandpaper. This helps soften up the fabric and eliminate any fibers that raise up after painting.

armchair being painted white in garage shop

Then we moved it into its new space in Emily’s room. It looks great tucked in her corner!

armchair in corner of bedroom with fake green plant and pillow

The upholstery fabric on our chair had a pattern when we started.

pattern on maroon wingback upholstered armchair

And since it’s a heavy duty upholstery fabric, the pattern isn’t just printed on there. It’s sort of raised. So that means the pattern will still be evident after all the painting is said and done.

Detail of Fabric Chair After Painting

So if you don’t like the pattern of your furniture, this won’t help you. But if changing the color of your chair is what you’re after, then this is a great option!

I must say you can’t expect a painted chair to be a cozy one you’ll want to curl up in. While the fabric isn’t crusty, it’s still pretty stiff. Our chair has the shiny look of leather, but isn’t buttery soft no matter how much it was sanded between coats. That being said, our fabric before painting wasn’t soft so you get what you pay for.

I think it’s perfect for an occasional chair to finish up a room or sit on while you put on your shoes. And if all you get in the end is a nice-looking chair that you don’t want to sit in, that’s not too bad, right?

wingback armchair painted white in corner of bedroom

Are we crazy or is this something you’d do too? Don’t forget to comment below! Thanks for Checking In! ~ Chelsea

Subscribe for Free Updates!

Stay up-to-date on Chelsea's latest projects, tips, useful resources and more.

Previous Post
Circle, Circle, Dot, Dot
Next Post
Accented Living Room

Related Content

Brick Retaining Wall How to Waterproof and PaintWaterproofing Vertical Masonry WallSitting on Back Steps After Finally Sealing BricksStripping Paint from BricksCompleted $200 Front Porch Makeover$200 Front Porch MakeoverBaby Toddler Helping Paint Iron Handrails on 1950s Ranch HomeHow to Update Rusty Iron Handrails

Comments

  1. Leann says

    December 3, 2015 at 7:56 pm

    I would try it; although, I have never heard, until now, of painting furniture.

    Reply
  2. Mary says

    December 28, 2015 at 6:58 pm

    Glad to read about your project and see how great it came out. Furniture painting is in the back of my mind to try. I have used chalk paint on our kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanity and several wood pieces. Since it has such a great “tooth” I will give it a go on fabric. Love this stuff. No priming or prep required and it wears like iron. Much cheaper than new cabinets. So wish me luck & you go, girl, with everything that you dream!!! MC

    Reply

Please Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome!

I’m Chelsea. DIY
enthusiast who loves
sharing my victories
and mishaps!
Learn more
here.

CHECK IN WITH CHELSEA ON INSTAGRAM

Thank Heaven for little girls!💕The best part of Thank Heaven for little girls!💕The best part of having daughters is getting to dress them up in clothes from my baby hood.😍🥰Not sure where Clara got her dark hair but it’s a fun change to have a baby with actual hair this time around! Doesn’t she look like a little baby doll?!
.
.
#newbornlife #changingtable #babygirl #thankheavenforlittlegirls #mommasgirl #allpinkallthetime
Welcome home Baby Clara! We love you so much alrea Welcome home Baby Clara! We love you so much already!💕
.
.
#welcomehome #familyofsix #babygirl #happybirthday #3girls1boy
Monogrammed washcloths and clear hooks was an inex Monogrammed washcloths and clear hooks was an inexpensive fix to a constant headache in my kids’ bathroom!🤯 As with many organization projects, hanging it on a wall makes all of the ugly go away!👏🏻
What simple fixes have you done around your house lately?Washcloths used here➡️ https://amzn.to/3bd9Gpv
Clear hooks here➡️ goto.target.com/zaGZ5x
She’s a Brick. House. Who went through mighty mi She’s a Brick. House. Who went through mighty mighty changes to get here!👏🏻Peeling paint was our nemesis on this project, but we eliminated it with persistence and determination. 👊🏻
.
.
We took it a step further by waterproofing these bricks to PREVENT paint from peeling in the future. A fresh coat of matching house paint and it’s like it was always meant to be🥰
.
.
All the details are in my latest blog post which is linked in my profile now! I know it’s not a project on everyone’s list but save it if you have a painted brick house or retaining walls around!
.
.
#brickhouse #paintedbrick #bricksteps #homemaintenance #homerepair #diyrepair #diyhouse #diyhouseprojects #diypainting #ironhandrails #wroughtiron #wroughtironwork
Still pregnant over here🙃Just finished up these Still pregnant over here🙃Just finished up these concrete spheres and will have a video to share soon! I first discovered them visiting my sisters in Mountain Brook, AL. They seem to be used to keep people from parking in the yard along the street. But I think they are so neat just as yard decorations! What other purposes could they serve?
.
.
#rainymonday #39weekspregnant #yardwork #paintedbrick #exteriorrenovation #cedarshakes #cornerhouse #lawndecor #yarddesign #yarddecor #yarddecorations
For my 4th baby, clothes become nursery decor. Bud For my 4th baby, clothes become nursery decor. Budget-friendly and practical. But how stinking sweet?! Most of these my sisters and I wore as babes 30 years ago😳Still trying to figure out the origin of the sweet blue dress though.🤔
.
.
What have you reused or repurposed as wall decor in a nursery or other space? I just love personal touches like this!
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Indoor Projects Outdoor Projects Craft Projects
Facebook Pagelike Widget
  • Contact
  • FAQs
  • Advertise with Chelsea
  • Media
  • Today’s Homeowner

Search This Site

Receive Free Updates Via Email

Copyright © 2022 Checking in With Chelsea • All Rights Reserved